The Emerald Price Chapter 5

By Ash Darklighter

Disclaimer: - The characters and situations used in this story are the property of George Lucas and Lucasfilm Ltd. I am only using them for some entertainment and will not even make one Republican credit from this endeavour. This is set around eight to ten years after Luke and Mara met each other for the first time. This one is for all the girls on the AA list.

"Let them go." The resigned voice was clipped but educated and, feeling as if he was drifting back through time, Han recognised it.

"I'll be a…" he muttered.

Luke let his cloak drop back into place but not before the sharp-eyed stranger had seen exactly what Luke's hand had been reaching for, even though his men were holding the Jedi by the shoulders. It was too much to hope for that the cold grey eyes didn't recognise the weapon he wore so proudly at his waist.

"I don't believe it." Han turned and stared in total disbelief at the man and woman facing him over an upturned swoop. "I really don't believe it. After all this time… it's impossible. I never even considered the possibility that you two might still be alive."

The man made a choked sound, his features stiffening but otherwise said nothing.

Luke lightly shrugged off the grip of the stranger's two men, a peculiar look crossing his face. "You should know by now Han, old buddy, that the impossible is commonplace for us." He'd felt the stunned recognition sweep across Han's emotions. This was no stranger to his best buddy. Han knew this man and knew him well. "Introduce me to our rescuers, Han."

A battered looking biker glared laser bolts at the group but, without saying anything, carefully picked up his downed vehicle and moved away.

"Rescuers! They…" Han's face tightened and he bit his lip and said nothing.

"Rescuers," Luke maintained firmly. "We may have had the swoopies on the run but there was no way we were going to be able to close out the scene to our satisfaction. They would have been back. We needed their assistance."

Han jerked his hand up and stabbed his finger in the air right in front of the Jedi's nose. "We wouldn't have needed rescuing if your nerf-brained behaviour hadn't gotten us into trouble to begin with. We were supposed to be keeping to ourselves. What part of 'low profile' don't you understand? I go in and do the dealing. You stay and keep watch. Then we go back to the ship and fly away."

"I don't remember that conversation. I never agreed to that."

"No, of course you didn't. Everything has to be from a 'certain point of view'."

Luke shrugged. "I had to help them, Han. You know I can never ignore those who need my assistance."

Han exhaled noisily. "I know, kid." 'Jedi!' he swore under his breath.

The voice was glacially cold. "Han Solo! You haven't changed a bit."

Han glared at the man standing behind him. "Oh, I've changed. More than you will ever know. I'm not like you. Not any more."

The man's voice turned a shade drier if that was possible. "I'm not sure you were ever like me, Solo. So in that respect – you haven't changed. Your choice of companion however…" The stranger's voice slowed as he scrutinised Luke carefully. "Where's your Wookiee friend –Chewbacca?"

"At home minding the kids," Han snapped belligerently, disliking the tone in the man's voice as he spoke about Chewie.

"His or yours?" The woman asked, arching a blonde eyebrow, glancing at her companion. She'd said virtually nothing since the conversation had started.

"Mine. Chewie's son is on Kashyyk with his mother," Han grated out between closed teeth. "He," he jerked his thumb at Luke, "doesn't have any yet."

Luke opened his mouth and then closed it, an uncomfortable expression on his face. He wasn't likely to have any.

"I had heard you'd managed to reproduce successfully. So," the man paused, "respectability for Han Solo and friendship with the Jedi. You have gone up in the world."

"Sarcasm doesn't become you, Feenus."

Luke cleared his throat. "Introductions?"

"I'm Altra Adremetis," the woman said with a cool smile, introducing herself.

Luke assessed her. Short, streaked blond hair framed a smooth oval face and shrewd grey-green eyes. Her trim figure bespoke of an active lifestyle but he reckoned that she was older than him - about Han's age. He could feel her presence through the Force even though she wasn't a Force adept - just her vital, pulsating aura. He briefly thought about Gaerial Captison and Mon Mothma. Another two women who were just as strong without being Force sensitives themselves.

Leia's tutelage of Luke in Old Republic manners came to his rescue. He bowed his head in the proper manner. "I am… Corran, Mistress Adremetis."

"Just Altra, please Corran."

Luke nodded. "Mistress Altra."

'Corran!' Han choked suddenly and found himself the centre of attention. A smile crossed Luke's face and Han immediately wanted to wipe it off. So he was going undercover.

"Hello, Han." Her voice was composed.

Han gave a distant smile. "Altra, still as beautiful as ever."

"You are surprised at my change of name?"

Altra gave Han the excuse he was looking for. These people weren't idiots from the Outer Rim. Surely they had recognised Luke? He thought fast. "I am surprised to hear you finally married this reprobate. I wondered if you might have had more sense."

Altra's companion glared at the Corellian.

Altra turned back to Luke. "Corran, this is my husband, Feenus Adremetis. Both he and Han are missing their sense of humour right now."

Luke inclined his head. There was an awkward silence. Han and Feenus were glaring vibroshivs at one another. Luke closed his eyes tiredly. Just as well he hadn't asked Altra if Han had been an old boyfriend. He suspected that her husband would have murdered them both. Another complication they didn't need. But he always supposed that things happened for a reason and perhaps finding these people was all part of their destiny.

Altra's smile warmed. "But you are married too, Han. It was all over the holonet. Even out here."

Han's mouth quirked into a smile. "Best thing I ever did."

Feenus Adremetis turned a dark suspicious gaze on Luke. "Jedi?" he asked accusingly, narrowing almond shaped eyes.

"Yes," Luke said studying the man before him. "And no, I can't read your mind unless you want me to." The man was hostile but whether he was friend or foe Luke hadn't quite decided. Something about his straight backed awareness of his surroundings spoke of a military past and perhaps even present. Luke's lightsaber had immediately been spotted and its function known.

"How did you manage to end up with a Jedi, Solo?"

"You know a lot about me from the newsnets, Feen. Surely you know that part too? My wife's brother is a Jedi. I'm around them often."

"Enlighten me anyway."

"I picked this one up on a charter flight. Never seemed to get rid of him."

"I wasn't a Jedi then," Luke said helpfully.

Feenus scowled. "We were told the Jedi were dangerous and deserved to die out."

"A good Imperial philosophy," Luke agreed. It was clear to him that Feenus Adremetis was, or had been, an Imperial soldier. Still, something in the Force told Luke that he could trust the man despite his apparent hostility. "There are few of us Jedi yet and what you have been told is wrong. We are here to help not to hinder. Ours is a peaceful order. We are trained to fight, yes, but never to initiate hostilities."

"I'm not sure I agree with the 'help' part of it."

"I did not start the fight just now," Luke said calmly.

Feenus glanced at Han. "As always, you come with trouble chasing after you."

"I resent that," Han muttered. "We arrive in this system on our own business – are shot at by pirates before we even land and then attacked by swoop gangs when we do. We just wanted to mind our own business – not to be hounded and shot at and then interrogated."

"I don't believe you."

"Don't believe us, but its true. We are still free men?" Han asked bluntly.

"I can't decide…"

"Feenus!" Altra tugged on her husband's sleeve as she interrupted him sharply. "That's enough."

"But…"

"I said that's enough." She looked at the Jedi, curiosity shining in her eyes. "Come on, you look tired."

"Altra…"

"Feenus, I remember Han as a friend. You have no power to detain anyone."

Her husband scowled. "I'm sure he's still wanted for something around here."

Han sighed. "I need to get back to the warehouse and finish getting parts for the Falcon. I was interrupted in my task earlier."

Luke nodded. "Sure, Han."

"Can you manage not to initiate any more street fighting between swoop gang members and the local community this time?"

"They needed my help," Luke protested.

"I know, kid. You can still never turn down a cry for help, can you? This time, just do it quietly."

"Feenus," Altra said. "You go with Han and see he gets what he needs at the best price. I'll take Corran back with me and get supper ready."

"Why should I?"

"Because I asked you to." Altra's voice was firm.

Feenus snarled something rude and turned to follow Han, muttering all the way into the warehouse.

Luke chuckled and shook his head as Altra joined him in laughter. He liked them. Two strong characters but he could sense the love between them. They weren't natives but they had to have been on Elrood for a number of years. They were too comfortable with the terrain and the people. They might have ideas on what could have happened to Mara. He had to cling to that hope that they would help him.

The Force had led them here for a reason. Perhaps it had been to save Tayo and his grandmother from slavery. Perhaps it was to let Han catch up with some more of his past, but surely it would lead him to the woman he… respected the most in the world. Yes, that was it. He respected and admired her.

She had not been on Elrood, Luke knew that much. There was no echo of her presence in the Force singing through his mind but she was close. If only she could call out to him again.

"You're very quiet," Altra commented as they walked to her home.

"Just got a lot of things on my mind," Luke replied. He glanced around. They were in a small courtyard surrounded by doors.

"We're right at the top. It's not much but we're comfortable. She pushed open a door which led into a tiny hall with a couple of turbolift doors at the other end. Luke followed her into the turbolift and stood quietly during the short ride to the top.

When the doors opened Luke found himself in a hall decorated with muted colours. He released a little of his tension as the calm surroundings eased him.

"We're here. This apartment is ours." Altra ran a card through a slot on the door, waiting for it to slide apart. Luke followed her inside and was pleasantly surprised to find a warm and welcoming home.

"This is nice," he said.

"We like it. It's quiet here and no one bothers us much." She went through to the kitchen and returned a few moments later with a couple of mugs of caf. "Here."

Luke gratefully accepted the drink and sat with his nose almost buried in it, inhaling the aroma. "Thanks."

Altra sank into a chair opposite the Jedi and stared at him. "I can see why Han likes you," she said. "You counteract his restless energy."

"I think it was the opposite way around when we first met," Luke stated quietly. "I don't think I was ever still, but I'm tired. It was a long flight from Coruscant." He closed his eyes briefly with fatigue before returning her frank regard. "How do you know Han?"

She hesitated. "It's difficult."

"You don't have to tell me but I sense that you knew him well."

"You could say that. A lot of stars, space and differing ideologies between them. They were good friends once. They were in the same class at the Imperial Academy and graduated together, serving on the same ship for a time until…"

"Chewie?"

"The Wookiee… yes. I suppose you know him too."

"I do. He's a good friend and one I would trust with my life."

"Yes, but to give up everything?"

"Sometimes fate gives you no choice."

"Han had a choice but…"

"He was discharged," Luke declared knowingly. "I've seen his file and I know exactly what happened. Han would do exactly the same again if he was faced with an identical situation. For him it wasn't a choice. He had believed that the Empire was good and true but his ideals were tarnished by the experience of seeing slavery at first hand. How could people treat sentient beings with a culture and history as rich and diverse as the Wookiee's as second class citizens? He can't abide cruelty or slavery and never will. I can't imagine Han without Chewbacca. They'd both be dead without the other."

Altra sipped her caf, her hands shaking slightly. "After that we didn't see him for several years – he seemed to have vanished."

"He avoided places that his friends might have frequented," Luke said. "Part of him was ashamed." Luke's blue gaze sharpened. "But you are not Academy trained, are you? How did you meet Han?"

"I met Han through Feenus."

"Of course. I'm not thinking."

"You're tired, Altra said quietly. "I had originally met Feenus at some sort of minor diplomatic dinner. I worked in one of the offices attached to the senate. Mostly dealing with correspondence," she shrugged self-deprecatingly. "One step up from a secretary droid actually. But it was work and it paid well. We'd started seeing one another whenever his leave took him back to Coruscant. When we started dating seriously, Han often came with us for a meal or a night out. He was good company in those days. Then he changed. I could see that he wasn't enjoying his work. I think he'd only seen the cover and not what went on underneath. Feenus couldn't understand what was wrong with him."

"But you did?"

She nodded, her grey-green eyes troubled. "I worked in the Senate building. I dealt with beings of other races every day. I saw the way that racial inequality was being promoted. Feenus wasn't used to that. He could accept the Imperial view that the aliens were lower life forms. He could until one of his best friends abandoned his whole career for a supposedly lesser being." She paused and stared into her cup, clearly remembering scenes from the past.

"There's more?"

"You're good at this," Altra murmured. "Must be part of being a Jedi."

"Perhaps."

She took another sip of caf. "With the increase in rebel activity, Feenus' ship was sent to the Outer Rim territories. He was part of the Imperial inspection team that boarded the Millennium Falcon…"

Luke winced. "Ouch. A rather unfortunate coincidence."

"Yes. Feenus got rather a nasty surprise when he discovered one of the brightest cadets to come out of the Imperial Academy was now smuggling spice for the Hutts."

"He let him go, didn't he?" Luke probed gently. "Han thought as he'd jettisoned his cargo he'd be safe.

Altra closed her eyes. "He let him go even though he had the proof that Han was guilty. There were traces of the spice in the ship's hold and if that had been known they would have torn the ship apart. Most smugglers work with hidden, sealed compartments. He told the rest of the team that he'd found nothing. Feenus was disgusted at how low Han had sunk. He said at the time that the only thing Han could do that was worse, was to join the Rebellion."

Luke shook his head, a smile on his face. "That was the next thing that he did – join the Rebellion."

"Yes, so we heard. His name and yours on the 'Empire's most wanted' list."

"My name?"

"Your name's not Corran - is it?"

Luke sighed. "No."

"It took me a while. You seem different from your holos and other such images but I think it's your eyes that give you away. I've never seen eyes so blue. You are the head of the Jedi Order. You're Jedi Master Skywalker."

"Yes, I'm Luke Skywalker. Corran Horn is another Jedi. A good man – a Corellian. He won't mind me borrowing his identity for a while."

"I don't think Feenus has realised yet who you are, but he will. He's so blinded by his anger right now that all he sees is a Jedi accompanying his former friend. In all the holos I've ever seen the only Jedi with Han Solo is one Luke Skywalker."

"We had to bump into the only former Imperial on Elrood that served with Han Solo. This is just so typical."

Altra smiled. "It is a strange one."

"Why is your husband so angry and why are you still living out here? Han made his choice and lived with it. Feenus was still a member of the Imperial fleet and still had that promising career and you ahead of him. We know why Han threw it away. Why did Feenus Adremetis do the exact same thing?"

"Feenus is angry because he realised that Han had been right all along. He resents him for understanding sooner, that the Empire he swore to serve with his life was nothing but evil."

"Not all of the Empire was evil. The Emperor was evil but if your husband truly served him, then he was doing it with the best of intentions."

Altra gave a small smile. "I was transferred from the job I worked on after they disbanded the Senate. There was no need for me to be there any more. I was due to be sent to an industrial world to help the bureaucrats there. Feenus persuaded me to find another job on Coruscant, which I did. We married when he came home on his next leave. It was just after Alderaan and the destruction of the first Death Star. Things got worse for Feenus after that – he's a good man with a conscience. He could see what the Empire was doing to so many innocent beings. Han had taunted him the last time they'd met. Questioned his honour when Feenus had sneered at his. Now, Han's words struck home."

"What did he do?"

"He deserted. Just days before the battle of Endor. He couldn't take it any more. I left everything I knew to join him here – my home and my family. He felt that he was worse than Han because he'd been perpetrating the lie. He should have seen that it was all false." Her smile turned bitter. "He's never really recovered."

"Then Han turns out to be the good guy."

"Yes, a real hero. Friends with the Jedi and husband to a princess."

"My sister, Leia. She's Jedi too as are their children. I have this gift – it's like having an extra sense about things but otherwise, I'm quite ordinary."

Altra's face showed her disbelief. "Yeah! Right!"

"Why didn't you return to the Core after the Empire fell?"

"Remember, the Empire didn't fall immediately."

"Tell me about it." Luke's voice was heartfelt.

Altra gave him a sympathetic smile. "There was a lot of messy mopping up on both sides. Feenus didn't know that the Emperor had died until months after it had happened."

"Ah, he thought he could be caught and punished for his desertion."

"For the first couple of years we moved around a bit until we came across some of Feenus' former comrades. They were out of the service and looking for something to do. We ended up here."

"So what do you do?"

"If Feenus wants to tell you he will tell you. I have said enough." The smile on her face was rueful.

"Fair enough."

Altra laughed warmly. "I haven't opened up like this to anyone, especially a stranger, in years. I don't think I've told Feenus as much. It's very cathartic. You could do good business counselling."

"Haven't the patience for it, normally. There are other Jedi far more gifted than I in these areas. My sister, for example, is a skilled diplomat."

"And she married Han?"

Luke rolled his eyes. "He is not a skilled diplomat."

"No, he never was good at minding what he said." She placed her cup down on a small side table. "Why are you here, Jedi Skywalker?"

"Luke, please. We're searching for a friend of mine." Luke's mouth straightened and his worry once again became visible on his face. "She's in some sort of trouble."

"She?"

"A fellow Jedi and, yes, a good friend. She just disappeared."

"This is the edge of nowhere, Luke. If she wanted to disappear this is the place to do it."

"She's not the type to just vanish. I know she's in trouble. I heard her call for me."

"Call for you?"

"Through the Force."

"Have you an image of her?" Altra wasn't sure what a female Jedi would look like. She envisaged someone tough and warrior-like but was surprised when Luke pulled a small holo from his pocket. The woman pictured within, laughing at the holocam, possessed delicate, beautiful features, an abundance of red-gold hair and striking clear green eyes.

Altra tilted her head and glanced at the Jedi Master but he was staring at the picture with his heart in his eyes, gripping the frame until his fingers were white. "She's your lover," she said.

"Wha… what?" Luke registered her words and his eyes grew wide with panic. "No, she's not."

Altra gazed at the startled man sceptically. "I'm sorry, my mistake."

"She's just a friend. She has a lover…"

"So where is he and why hasn't he come all the way out here to look for her?"

"He's busy." Luke was aware of how lame his answer was. Lando should be here searching for Mara.

"A woman that beautiful would fetch a high price in the slave markets."

The holo fell from Luke's suddenly nerveless fingers and clattered onto the floor.